Henry Mayo Bateman

Cartoon: The Winner, Ascot.

As a teenager, Henry Mayo Bateman was drawing cartoons for publications but at the age of twenty-one Bateman had a nervous breakdown in part over his indecision over whether or not to continue as a much in demand cartoonist or as a serious painter. His style altered entirely to one very much distinct from all others and that of cartoons as a whole.

Towards the end of WWI Bateman whose talent was recognised as a potential morale booster was sent to the front by the War Office to gather material. His work had a restorative effect and after the war he was employed by a variety of publications in particular Punch and Tatler. He developed the strip cartoon to one that almost entirely relied on images rather than text as previously, utilising his superb draughtsmanship and expressive wit.

At the height of his fame and shortly before WWII, Bateman simply stopped working as a cartoonist. He slipped off to the island of Gozo to pursue his dream of being a serious painter. Today Bateman’s cartoons are all the more remarkable as the foibles he recorded have proven to be enduring and his humour retains its relevance to modern times.